National Museum of History, Spanish Museo Nacional De Historia, in Mexico City, an offshoot of the National Museum of Anthropology (founded 1825). In 1940 the National Historical Museum became a separate institution specializing in Mexican history from the Spanish conquest in the 1500s to the promulgation of the constitution of 1917. The museum moved to Chapultepec Castle, Mexico City, in 1941, opening in 1944.

Watchtower on the grounds of Chapultepec Castle, which houses the National Museum of History, …

By the late 20th century, the museum housed more than 150,000 items of clothing, documents, flags, jewelry, weapons, and other objects relating to Mexico’s social and cultural history. Among its holdings were a battle standard used by the conquistador Hernán Cortés and an 18th-century sculpture, “Virgin with Child,” attributed to the artist Luisa Roldán, who was Spanish royal sculptor to King Charles II.

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city and capital of Mexico, synonymous with the Federal District (Distrito Federal; D.F.). The term Mexico City can also apply to the capital’s metropolitan area, which includes the Federal District but extends beyond it to the west, north, and east, where the state (estado) of México...

in Mexico City, world-famous repository of some 600,000 art and other objects relating to Mexico. Many anthropological, ethnological, and archaeological materials in the collection date from the pre-Hispanic period. Exhibited on two large floors, these displays show ancient human remains and art...

...with specialized aspects of history may be found at the national, provincial, or local level, while museums of general history are rare at the national level. One example of the latter is the National Museum of History in Chapultepec Castle, Mexico City. Other national museums of history can be found particularly among newer states, where they have been used as a means of arousing...